Is It the End?
by Fearless.Leo
Summary: When a storm hits Central, Edward helps rescue some children. But when he gets trapped and gravely injured, will he be rescued in time? RATED M for Cursing and Graphic Depictions of Injuries  just to be safe .
1. Chapter 1

INTRO- I do not own FMA, sadly… There are no pairings. This won't be that long, either.

If I get the description of a building or the city wrong, I'm sorry.

RATED M for cursing and graphic depictions of gory injuries.

_Italics_ means it's someone's thoughts.

First chapter is short, sorry 'bout that. It's just kinda filler stuff… ^^

"Whew, Al, we finally made it to central!" Ed looked around through the crowd, seeing if anyone from Mustang's office was there to greet him. However, he couldn't exactly see over anyone's head…

"Al, do you see anyone from-" He ran into a wall. Or, at least he thought it was a wall. Until it talked.

"EDWARD! Oh, I'm so glad to see you!" He was pulled into a bone-crushing hug and almost suffocated. It was none other than Armstrong. "How have you been? What have you been up to? How's your auto-mail?" He was bombarded with question after question.

"Choking- not… breathing!" He clawed at Armstrong's arm until he was released. He collapsed on the floor and gasped for breath. "What *pant pant* was that *gasp* for, you *pant* psycho?" He laid on the ground for a good 5 minutes, the flow of people parting around the two hulking figures crouching over him.

"Relax, big brother. Sorry about that, sir. Are you here to escort us?" Al looked between Armstrong and his brother. "Ed, get up. You're making a scene." Ed was now sprawled out, growling at Armstrong.

"Yes, I am. There's a car out front. Let's go." He picked up Ed's suitcase and proceeded to pick him up too. He carried them out to the car, with Ed screaming expletives and beating on his back the whole way. When he reached the car, he threw Ed into the back with Al and sat in the front. They arrived at headquarters after a short car ride.

When they stepped out of the car, Ed looked up at the sky. There were clouds gathering and the wind was picking up, whistling through the streets. "Al, do those clouds look weird to you? I mean, they look almost green. Menacing, huh?" Al looked at the sky. "Either way, we should get inside. It's going to rain. My joints hurt." The brothers trudged inside as it began to sprinkle.

The group, joined by a few guards, proceeded to climb up 5 sets of stairs. They walked down the hall until they reached a door that said, "Colonel Roy Mustang."And underneath it, in tiny letters, "The Flame Alchemist."

The guard knocked on the door. "The Elric boys are here, sir."

Inside, Roy sat at his desk. He was looking worriedly out the window at the pouring rain. Odd for this time of year. He sighed and set down his paperwork. "Thank you. Come in." The door opened and the boys walked in. The Colonel stood up and walked over to the window. "It's really raining out there, isn't it? It's blowing sideways." The water looked as if it was being sprayed out of a giant hose. He turned and walked over to where the brothers were standing. "Alphonse." They nodded to each other. He looked down at Ed. "Edward." He just grumbled.

"Hello, Colonel. It's good to see you again." Alphonse sat on the couch.

"Yes, hello. You tall bastard." Ed set next to his brother and looked towards the window, then back at the Colonel. "So. Mustang. What did you want us for?" He almost sneered the name.

Roy turned to look at Ed. "You need to fill out a yearly report. Here it is." He handed a packet to Ed, along with a pen. "Get started. It'll take a while. I would-" A guard burst into his office at that moment, startling everyone. Lieutenant Hawkeye followed.

"Sir! We have a problem! It seems that there is a… a…" She faltered, fear glimmering in her eyes.

"Well?" He stepped closer. "Riza, what is it?"

Her eyes widened. "Look out the window, sir." Everyone turned and looked.

It was a tornado.


	2. Chapter 2

Everyone's eyes widened in shock. There, moving slowly towards headquarters, ravaging the city, was a mile-wide, churning, column of air.

Al and Ed were actually very scared. People, monsters, no problem. They had weaknesses and could be defeated. But mother nature? No way.

"Holy. Shit." Ed started trembling.

Riza gasped and lunged for Roy, who was closest to the window. "Roy, look out!" She knocked him back from the window. Something crashed through the window. It was a chunk of a wall. If Roy hadn't been knocked over…

"Ed! Al! Move, now!" Riza had helped Roy back up and started herding all the guys towards the door. They all burst into the hall and headed for the stairs. All other personnel were also heading for the stairs.

When they reached the stairs, it was chaos. For trained people, they were not very orderly.

Ed had enough. "EVERYBODY MOVE!" Everyone froze and turned towards him. "Well? MOVE, DAMMIT!" Everyone cleared out of his way. He yelled into the stairwell. "Everybody, hang on!" He clasped his hands, knelt to the ground, and changed the stairs into a slope. "It'll be a little more dangerous, but quicker."

Because they were on the top floor, they had seen the twister first. However, if anyone else had seen it, they would be below them on the chute, and they would pose a hazard.

Roy and Riza shoved Ed and Al into the stairwell, then leapt in themselves. The other personnel followed. They made it easily to the basement. Once down there, Ed and Al ripped a phone off the wall. Using alchemy, they made it shoot right up through the floor of every level but the top. Roy grabbed the microphone.

"Attention, everyone! There is imminent danger! A tornado is heading directly for us. Remain calm and come to the basement. The stairs are now chutes, so be careful!"At the same time, Ed and Al were busy shifting the other stairs into chutes. After about a minute, people started sliding into the basement. Ed, Al, Riza and Roy were helping them up and directing them to safety. As soon as the last person reached the bottom, the twister struck.

It was as if hundreds of trains were hitting at the same time. The building shook, and the wires started to spark. Part of the ceiling collapsed on top of the two brothers, but Al protected Ed. They shoved it off of themselves and ran towards the shelter and safety.

Everyone was crowded into a rather small room. The women were against the walls, and the men were more in the middle. Ed and Al were by the door, which wouldn't even shut all the way due to lack of room.

For what seemed like hours, but was in reality only about 5 minutes, the building shook like an old freight train. The old lights flickered, dust fell from the walls. Many people were deathly quiet, while others were screaming. Then, it stopped.

Everyone became silent. It was eerie. There was no talking, everyone seemed to be holding their breath. Ed cautiously opened the door. The basement seemed fine, just the stairwell was caved in a little.

Roy stood up and walked out of the room to stand next to Ed. "Do you think you could stabilize the steps enough to get people out?" He turned around and looked at everyone. Riza was caring for the younger recruits. Al was keeping Sheska calm.

Ed shook his head. "I don't think so. Is there another way out?" He looked around. "Maybe a window?"

"No. But there is an old coal chute. Maybe you could transmute that?" He pointed down the hallway. "It's in a very old room, down by the generators. Why not try it?"

"Coal chute, hm? I guess we could try. Just try not to blow us up, ok?" Ed chuckled a little and went to talk to Al.

"Brother, what are we going to do? Are we trapped?" Al looked at his older brother with worry in his voice. He looked down at Sheska. "Will everyone be ok?"


	3. Chapter 3

"Everyone will be fine!" Ed almost shouted. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at him. Whispers of 'what?' and 'how?' spread throughout the group quickly. Then Roy stepped up.

"Edward and his brother, Alphonse, are going to try and make an exit through the old coal chute. Everyone, please exit this room calmly. Bring the most severely injured into the hallway first." Everyone did as they were told, and things went much more smoothly. The worst injury was that of a receptionist. She broke her arm while fleeing her office.

Roy, Ed, and Al led the way to the generator room. Once inside, Roy pointed at a small door near the back. He had to yell over the noise of the generators. They were still working, but they were sputtering severely. "Inside that door is the coal chute! It's about 30 feet long and comes out on the side of the building! It's made out of steel, so you should be able to handle it ok!"

Ed muttered to himself, "Bastard." He and Al walked to the small room. When they opened the door, they were instantly covered by a layer of coal dust. "Oh, great. Thanks for the warning, Colonel Dumbass."

The brothers stepped into the room and flipped on the light. A single, flickering bulb hung from a wire in the middle of the ceiling. On the opposite wall, a small, metal door was hanging half-open. Ed walked over to it. "This must be the chute. It's rusty, and kind of small. It's…" He hesitated.

"What, brother? Can you not do it?"Al sounded concerned, and began to walk over.

"No, Al." Al stopped. "It's… too small… for you to fit." Silence.

"It's fine, I'll figure out a way to get out. Let's just get everyone else out." At that moment, the whole building seemed to groan. "Let's hurry. It doesn't sound that stable."

Ed nodded. "Right. Here we go." He turned to the chute.

Clapping his hands together, he concentrated. Then he slammed his gloved hands into the chute. There was a blinding flash of blue light. Then, where the chute had been, a staircase appeared. It was bigger than the chute was, but it was at a very sharp angle and very dangerous. Al, however, would be able to fit.

Ed looked at his brother very seriously. "I wouldn't leave you behind, Al. You know that." Then he smiled and scratched his head.

Roy stepped in. "Good work, boys. Alright, everyone. Let's go!" He stepped out to let others in. The brothers helped everyone, one by one, to enter the chute. The first person up was Armstrong. He punched open the door at the top so everyone could get out. As he did, the building shook. "Double time, everyone! This is very unstable! We have to get out now!" Leiutenant Hughes, Ed, Al, Roy and Riza were last. By the time they got in the chute, it was collapsing. Ed was last.

"GO! I'll stabilize it!" He slammed his hands into the wall and concentrated on keeping them stable. When Al got out, he let go. Instantly, the walls started falling in again. Then he saw a cable and heard someone calling out to him.

"Grab it, Fullmetal! Hurry up!" It was Roy. He latched onto the cable, and instantly he was being yanked up the shaft. He was almost to the top when it collapsed on him. Luckily, it was only his leg. His left leg.

He dropped the cable and used alchemy to clear away the debris. When he stood up, he looked around the city.

Everywhere, there was nothing but destruction. Buildings were destroying, or collapsing. There were people wandering around, some screaming, others deathly silent.

"Dammit, why was there no warning? How could this happen, Mustang!" Ed grabbed Roy's sleeve. A click went off right by his head.

"Let go of the Colonel, Edward." It was Riza. With her gun pointed at her head. "Sir, what are we going to do?"

Roy thought for a moment. "Form search parties. Anyone with sufficient medical training will remain here. All others, break up into groups. Search the city, and bring the injured here. Fullmetal, you and your brother go with Hawkeye. Stay together, you hear me? That's an order!"

Everyone split up and headed out. Ed's group headed for the warehouse district. They turned up nothing fruitful, seeing as how everyone would have been home when it hit. While passing an alley, Ed paused. He thought he heard something. Shaking his head, he took a step. _There it is again. I wonder if-_

"Edward, are you coming?" Riza was staring at him.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Coming." He walked up to them. Everyone turned and began walking again. He slipped back to the alley way.

The alley was very dark. The sun was hidden behind clouds, and the walls were high. It was a dead-end. "Not for long." He pressed him hands to it and a small hole appeared. Big enough to squeeze through, but small enough to not make enough noise for anyone to hear. He came up to a very large, old building. The sign was old and worn.

"Steel Manufacturing Inc. Hm. I wonder-" Then he heard it again. It was a voice.

"Mommy! Daddy, someone! Please help!" It was very faint, and it sounded like a young boy. He also heard crying. _Great, two people._ He agilely climbed over the broken-down barbed-wire fence and slipped into the broken-down building. It had been already collapsing before the tornado, and that just made it worse. The whole west face was falling, and the rest of the building could barely support it.

He made his way towards the noise. "Hello? Is anyone there? I'm here to help you. Say something so I can find you." He walked through mazes of crates and steel materials and equipment. Steel poles with jagged edges lay everywhere. Sharp gears and rusty barbed wire littered the ground. "Oh, great. Good thing I've had my tetanus shot." He laughed at his own sarcasm. He kept calling out every few seconds.

Finally, he heard a reply. After the boxes, the wall had caved in. His current position would have been in the middle of the room, but the collapsed building made it impossible to go further. "Hello? Please help!"

"Where are you? Can you wave your hand or something?" Ed looked around, but saw only rubble. Then he saw something move. It was a little hand. "I see you, hold on!" He ran along the edge of the fallen wall until he came to a gaping hole in the floor. On the other side, buried under rubble, he saw them.

There were 2 little children, a boy of about 5 and a girl of about 2. They were safe because the rubble had fallen in such a way that it was both trapping and protecting them. "Stand back, kids!" He concentrated, and touched part of a beam that was protruding across the gap from their shelter. The pile of scraps on top of them changed shape and became more of a shelter. It looked like a shed without one wall.

Ed easily leapt across the gap. "Who- who are you? How did you do that?" The kids were staring at Ed in wonder. He managed a small smile.

"I'll tell you later. Ok, the way out of here is to follow this fallen wall here, then the other wall over there." He pointed while he explained. _Crap, should have made a bridge._ At that moment, the building started to groan. The ceiling was buckling and dust was sifting down from the rafters. _Shit, no time!_

He picked up the boy and threw him across the gap. Then the floor under him shifted. The little girl lost her balance and almost fell into the basement through a gaping hole. Ed leapt and caught her hand, which caused the floor to shift more. He threw her across and was about to jump when a steel beam fell on his left leg, pinning it.

"Run, now! Run, go go!" The children ran as fast as they could, looks of terror on their faces.

With a great heave, Ed pushed the steel beam away. However, his escape efforts were futile. He leapt across the crack, but everything was collapsing. The floor gave way, and he fell through, with tons and tons of steel and wood and cement following. His last thought was, _I hope the kids are ok._


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey, where's Ed? Brother, where are you?" Al looked around, but Ed was nowhere to be found.

Riza looked at him. "What do you mean, 'where is he'? Where did he go?" She looked around. "Great, now we have to search for a search-party member." She groaned. At that moment, a horrendous sound was heard. It was a mixture of splintering wood and twisting steel. Riza looked towards the sound.

"Steel Manufacturing! It's going down!" Everyone watched as the 3-story building, only a street away, collapsed before their eyes. A giant dust cloud raced towards them. "Move, now!"

Everyone ran and hid behind another building. After the dust settled, they stepped back out. "Come on, guys. Let's find Ed." They started walking in the general direction of the now-collapsed steel plant, when 2 children ran up to them.

"Help, help! Miss, please help!" A little boy ran up, his little sister in tow. They both looked fine.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt? Where are your parents? What are your names?" She kneeled next to them and put her hand on the boy's shoulder.

"We're fine, miss. I'm Matthew, this is Kay. Our parents were here on business and we ran off to play… Don't tell them, please! We were playing in the old steel place when the storm hit. The wall fell on us, but it also hid us from the bad storm." The little girl began to cry. Al sat down next to her and she walked over to him and held his hand.

"How did you get out?" Riza looked at the children. They couldn't possibly have moved their surroundings even an inch. They were so little!

"We called out for help, and then we heard a voice. A boy found us. He was kind of short for an adult, though. He remade our shelter and saved us." The boy sat down by his sister.

Al spoke up. "What do you mean, remade? Like this?" He grabbed a scrap of wood and reshaped it into a small horse using alchemy.

"Yes, just like that!" The boy looked almost scared.

"Describe the boy to me, please." She looked at Al meaningfully.

"He had yellow hair, and yellow eyes. He was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt with a stiff collar over a black tank. Black boots, and black pants. He had a braid, and a silver hand." The boy paused. "He saved us." Kay started to cry.

Al gasped and stood up. "Where is he now? What happened? How-"

"Al. Stop, you're frightening them." The kids were trembling, with tears in their eyes. "Is he still in there? Or did he get out?"

"He saved us and told us to run. I don't know." Matt looked down. "I hope he's ok."

Riza stood up. She looked at a guard. "James, take these children back to Roy. Tell him what happened. Help find their parents. We are going to get Ed back."

O-O-O

_Ugh… What happened? Where am I? _Ed slowly opened his eyes, but all he saw was darkness. He tried to lift his head, but he hit it on something. He reached his hand up and felt that it was a steel beam. He tried to move his right arm, but nothing happened. He reached over and felt nothing. His arm was gone. He reached up to his shoulder and felt a little bit of metal. But he also felt blood.

He tried to scoot down a little so he could sit up, but as soon as he tried, three things happened; the rubble on top of him shifted and almost collapsed on him, he heard a horrible sound like metal grating on concrete, and excruciating pain shot through his left side.

"AAAAGH! Goddammit! What the hell?" He slowly reached down near his hip and instantly pulled his hand back. "No way… Aw, shit!" He reached back down and his fears were confirmed: there was a large, steel pole sticking out of his side. _That must have been what made that grating sound. But that means…_ It was sticking out his back. It was also covered in something sticky.

Blood.

At that moment, he realized that his whole back was wet, as well as his head and arm. He also noticed that his jacket was gone, his right boot was off, and his shirt was shredded. He reached up to his head and felt that the back of his head had a huge gash in it. Blood was slowly oozing out of it. He touched the gash and almost screamed out of fear and pain. _Is that… my skull?_

By this time, he could kind of make out the shapes of the ruin he was buried in. A large chunk of wall was pinning down his left leg, and a wooden beam was on the other. He slowly turned to the right and saw a familiar sight trapped under an old conveyor belt: his right arm. He tried to slowly shift sideways to grab it, but as soon as he moved, the rubble shifted again. The steel beam over his head shifted backwards, and pieces of concrete and bricks fell on him, pinning his arm down.

"Hey! Is anyone there? Hey help! Al, Riza, anybody!" He yelled as loud as he could, but he heard no response. For the first time in a long while, he started to cry. "Dammit, is no one out there?" He kept yelling until he went hoarse.

The last thing he thought before everything went black was _I'm sorry I broke our promise, little brother._

O-O-O

When the search party reached the steel plant, the sight that greeted them was horrible. All of the walls had collapsed and everything was piled on top of everything else. The floor had collapsed, allowing everything to fall into the basement. Some of the wood was on fire, and the steel was twisted. Huge chunks of the wall were sticking up out of the rubble like ghosts.

"Big brother! Where are you?" Al ran up to the fence and ripped open the rusted gate. He was about to jump into the rubble when Riza stopped him.

"Al, if you jump in there and just start moving stuff, and Edward is still in there, you could kill him. We have to do this VERY carefully. We have to wait for back-up. The only thing we can do is determine if he really is in there." She looked around anxiously. "Alright, break up into 4 groups. Al, stay with me. Everyone go to a different side of the building and see if you can see or hear Edward." The group broke up and got to work.

Al and Riza's group was by the side nearest Ed. Al walked over to a scrap pile by the fence and grabbed a large conveyor belt. The gears were missing, but the steel was still strong. He set it down by the edge of the hole and used alchemy to make somewhat of a small overhang.

"Riza, I'm too heavy to do this. Walk out to the end and lie down. See if you can see or hear him." She nodded and precariously walked out to the end. She slowly got onto her stomach and scooted to the end. She pulled out a flashlight and called Ed's name. After five minutes of doing so, however, she had no results.

"Al, I'm sorry. But if he's in there, he's either unconscious or way down there or-" She stopped suddenly and looked like she was going to cry.

Al just looked down into the pit of destruction. "Ed, please. Please be ok."


	5. Chapter 5

"Come on men, hurry it up!" As soon as James brought Matt and Kay back to Headquarters, a plan was being put into place. Roy was shouting orders at his men, and trying to help them. They were bringing in other alchemists from around the area to help get Ed out. Once everyone was assembled, the team of trained alchemists piled into a few cars and rushed towards the plant.

When they got there, the search party was waiting for them. Riza snapped to attention and was quick to salute the Colonel. "Sir! We cannot locate Edward. Alphonse seems to think that he could possibly have fallen through, due to the weight of his auto-mail. However, if that's true, it will be nearly impossible to get him out." Her last sentence was very quiet and her voice wavered. Al was still standing by the building.

Everyone walked over to him. "Al, are you sure he's on the bottom? I mean, what if he's not even in there?" Roy was trying to be optimistic.

"I'm sure, Colonel. He's in there." Al went on to explain his theory of how they could free him.

"Everyone, can you hear me?" Roy's voice boomed out over the crowd. "As we see it, there are three options. One, we could attempt to tunnel underneath the pit to him and pull him out. However, we aren't sure exactly where he is. Two, we could just start moving the rubble, but it could shift and kill him. Three, we would need the help of the alchemists." He kind of smiled. Whispers spread around quickly.

"What's the plan, sir?" Someone cried out from the middle of the crowd.

Roy smiled. "Here's how it goes…"

O-O-O

Down below, Ed was slowly becoming weaker. He was still losing blood, although the flow was slower. The weight of the bricks on his arm and chest were making it hard for him to breathe. The metal rod in his gut was slowly becoming locked in place because his blood was clotting around it, and then drying. The rod has also made a small nick in his stomach when it pierced through his body, and his stomach acid was beginning to leak out. If help didn't arrive soon, he was going to die.

O-O-O

Back up on top, all the alchemists had gathered around. Each had a large pile of scrap metal before them. At least one piece of the metal was touching the mound of rubble.

"All right, ready everyone? On three! One, two, three!" Roy shouted out to the alchemists. Everyone was slowly transmuting the metal so that it spread over the rubble and bonded it into one humongous piece. They estimated the amount of metal so it would be enough to reach almost to the floor, but not all the way. That way, it would not encompass Ed.

"Alright, good job! Bring in the crane!" The crane had two strings on it. On the end of one was a giant claw, similar to a claw machine. However, their prize was much more valuable than normal. On the other sat an alchemist named Ron. Before he was an alchemist, he was a welder. His job was to cut off a piece of the wreckage so the crane could lift it out. The process would be slow, but it was the safest way they had.


	6. Chapter 6

Sorry the chapters are kinda short…

It continued this way for a good 2 hours. They finally reached the bottom near the edge and Al and Roy jumped down. Al's large metallic feet made a clanging noise with every step. Roy's booted ones, a softer thump. There were holes everywhere. It was also more dangerous, seeing as how the alchemic reaction to stabilize it hadn't reached the bottom. With every step, they were in danger of killing themselves or Ed.

"Edward! Where are you, you little shrimp?" Silence. "Shit, he must be unconscious or-" He stopped himself and looked up at Al. He was just staring straight ahead. "Alphonse? What-"

"Sh!" Al shushed the Colonel. "Do you hear that? It sounds like something's dripping. Like water, or… blood…"He gasped. "Brother! Brother, no!" He started moving in the general direction of the dripping.

"Riza! Can you hear me? Start cutting away more of the rubble from the middle! ON THE DOUBLE!" He leapt over rubble and chased after Al. He had climbed up a little, back onto the stable wreckage. He was looking down to the ground.

"Do you see that? It's blood! It's a trail… Coming from over… there!" Al raced towards the source of the blood. Luckily, the part of the rubble over that source was all loose stuff. "Brother? Brother! I found him!" Al immediately fused the larger pieces of rubble together; part of a wall, a steel beam, some old rafters.

"Lower away!" Roy waved the crane arm down and Ron got to work, slowly severing the bonds of the wreckage so the chunk could be removed. As soon as it was lifted away, Roy wished that Al had remained up top.

Ed was lying in a large pool of his own blood. His pallor was almost a chalky color. His right arm was lying under some rubble, his left leg smashed but still connected. His jacket and boots were missing, his shirt and pants shredded. His head was gashed open, and his face was bruised. Worst of all, a giant pole was sticking out of his abdomen. Blood was oozing out of the wound, along with another fluid that seemed to be dissolving the previously-congealed blood.

"Shit! We have got to get him out of here, now! Riza! Get a stretcher down here! Ron! Tell the other alchemists to make a ramp!"He turned to Al. "Al? We'll get him out of here and fix him up, ok?" He put his hand on the young boy's metallic shoulder. "Dammit Edward, why did you do this?" _If we don't get him to the hospital fast… I'm not sure what will kill him first. His blood loss, or his stomach._


	7. Chapter 7

"Come on, come on kid! Stay with us! Nurse! Get me 20mg…" When Ed arrived at the hospital, it was madness. He was in the worst condition the hospital had seen in a long time.

They rushed him into surgery to sew up his stomach. The acids were leaking out, and corroding the nearby organs. His lung had also collapsed from the trauma of going from a dank, dark environment into a light, loud one. He shattered his left arm in 5 places, he had a concussion, and he cracked his pelvis. His stomach and many of his cuts, including the one on his head, were infected. (Isn't this just lovely?)

Al walked into the waiting room, still stunned by the condition of Ed. _How is this possible? Ed's the strongest person I know. He can't di- he'll be fine. _At that moment, Roy and Riza walked up.

"Alphonse? Are you ok?" Riza looked genuinely concerned about him.

"I guess, Lieutenant. Should… should I call Winry? I mean, she's one of his best friends… our best friend… and his mechanic, too." He sounded scared and unsure of what to do. He looked up at her.

She looked at Roy for help. He sighed. "I guess I would call her. But just tell her that he's injured, so she doesn't freak out about it. Here's some money for the pay phone." He handed Al some money and directed him to the phones. He walked around the corner.

"Colonel? Do you really think Edward can pull through? I mean, I know he's tough and all, but I've never seen someone look like this before…" She looked at him, worry in her eyes.

"Fullmetal better pull through. There are too many people that care about him for him to die." With that, he walked out the door and headed back to central.

Riza headed up to Ed's room in the ICU. He was lying in bed, with tubes and wires all over the place. His chest was barely moving with each breath. He looked like a ghost.

A nurse walked up to Riza and saluted her. "Lieutenant. You know the Elric boy, yes?" She nodded. "Well, he's just come out of surgery. We stitched all his wounds and fixed his stomach, but his insides are all jumbled. He's on life-support right now. His head wound is infected badly. Right now, he has a 5% chance of surviving. He probably won't make it through the night. If he does, his change jumps to 10%, and increases every day after." He sighed and scratched his head. "I'm sorry there's not more we can do." He turned and walked away.

Metal footsteps were heard right behind Riza. She quickly wiped the tear off her cheek and turned. "Alphonse. You heard that, didn't you?" She looked up at him and could tell he had heard. He was clenching his fists. She reached out her hand and patted Al's arm. "I'm sorry. I truly am." She walked over to the window to Ed's room and looked in again. "He doesn't know how many people really care about him."

O-O-O

"_Ugh. Where am I?" Ed looked around and saw he was standing in what seemed to be a hallway. Except the walls were glowing. He was barefoot, wearing only a white unbuttoned dress shirt and black pants._

_At one end he saw all his friends: Al, Riza, Havoc, standing in the hospital. At the other end, he saw a beautiful open field and… "Mom? Is that you?" A bright light was emanating from behind her, making her look like an angel._

"_Yes, darling. It's me. Come join me. You're in so much pain. If you join me, it'll all be over." She reached her arms out, as if to embrace him._

"_No, big brother! Don't leave me! You promised!" He turned towards his friends at the other end and saw everyone crying. _

_He took a step towards his mother. The light got brighter, his friends' sobs became louder._

_He took a step towards his friends. The light got duller, the sobs quieter._

_He was stuck._

"_Dammit." He was so confused. He sat down in the middle of the hall, afraid to move either way. No matter what he did, he would lose someone he love and someone he loved would lose him._

O-O-O

_Ring… ring…_ "Hello, Rockbell residence. May I ask who's calling?" Winry sounded like she had been working on auto-mail again.

"Hi, Winry. It's Al." He paused, unsure of how to continue.

"Oh hi, Al! How are you? What's happened lately?" She sounded like her normal, chatty self.

"Well, not so good. There was a tornado here." Winry gasped. "It's ok, no one in Central was injured that badly. But afterwards we went out to search for people who might be trapped. Well, Ed went off on his own and… Winry, he's not doing too good. A whole building collapsed on him. He might not make it through the night. I don't know what to do! I can't even show how upset I am in this stupid body!"He punched the wall.

"Wha-what? What the hell was he thinking?" She started sobbing into the phone. "I'm coming out there right now!" She slammed the phone down.

Al slowly hung the phone back up and repaired the wall. _What if she doesn't make it in time?_

O-O-O

_Ed was still sitting in the hallway, unsure of what to do. Everyone kept calling to him._

"_Darling, please. Come to me. You wanted me back badly enough to give up your leg and your brother's body. You can be whole again!" A wind surrounded him and suddenly his auto-mail had been replaced with real flesh. He looked up at his mother, and the wind surrounded him again, returning his limbs to normal._

"_Big brother! Please come back! I need you! I'm lost without you, and I'll be trapped like this forever!" His brother reached out his large metal arm, and it started dissolving._

"_Al, no!" He leapt towards his brother, but then stopped. He was close enough to his brother to keep him whole, but still near enough his mother to keep her there as well._

O-O-O

After calling Winry, Al was trying to occupy himself by walking around the hospital. Out of everyone there that he saw, his brother was the worst off. After about an hour he walked back up to his brother's room. He figured the nurses would be out by now so he could sit in there with him.

As he was walking into the ICU, a doctor walked up to him. "Alphonse? I'm afraid that your brother is in a coma. I think this will help keep him alive, but if he stays like that for too long…"

"Yeah. He'll be like that for a long time. He'll be a vegetable. I know." He walked past the doctor and went into Ed's room. Both of his auto-mail limbs were leaning against the wall. His head and whole torso were wrapped in bandages. His left arm was in a cast. Tubes ran down his stomach, and a breathing apparatus was hooked up as well. His chest slowly rose and fell with each breath the machine gave him. In a word, he looked pathetic.

Al sat down in a chair across the room. "Big brother… Stay strong. Everyone needs you."


	8. Chapter 8

Within 3 hours, Winry had arrived at the hospital. She burst into the main door and sprinted up to the receptionist's desk. "Which room is Edward Elric in?" The receptionist looked quite startled.

"He's in the ICU, level 5. Take that elevator over there. When you get out, turn left, then take a right. His room number is 504. I should warn you he's-" She didn't even get to finish. Winry bolted for the elevator and leapt into one, almost knocking over a nurse.

"Oh, sorry, ma'am. I'm anxious to see my friend. I heard he wasn't doing well and… I wanted to see him… His name is Edward Elric, do you know him?" She started tearing up.

"Oh, yes, the alchemist boy. I was on his surgical team. He really doesn't look too well. But I have faith in that boy. If he even managed to survive buried in the rubble, he must be a tough little guy." She managed a small smile. "I can show you to his room if you like. But please, don't be so wild or loud. This is the ICU, after all."

They walked down the hall, past another room with a little boy in it. He was about 5, and he looked very sickly. "Poor little thing…" She held her hand to her heart.

"Here, room 504. Go on in." The nurse opened the door and Winry walked in. A privacy curtain blocked Ed from sight.

"Hi, Al. How are you?" She walked over to Al and put her hand on his arm. She turned and looked at the curtain. "How's Ed?"

"He's… holding on. He's in a coma now. It's helping to keep him alive, but if he doesn't wake up by tomorrow night, he probably won't wake up at all…" He put his head in his hands. "I wish I had my body back. If nothing else, I could at least show how I truly feel."

This broke Winry's heart. She slowly walked over to the curtain and pulled it back.

"Winry, don't! You shouldn't see-" Too late.

"Oh my god… Ed!" She burst into tears. Al walked over and just hugged her. "He looks so sad! I miss the old him… Cursing all the time, complaining about his height… I just want him back."

O-O-O

"_Edward, dear, you can't just stay here forever. Eventually you'll have to move. If you don't, you'll either be brought here or dragged down to Hell. Your choice." Trisha was talking almost meanly. She seemed… threatening._

_Now Ed was really confused. Dragged to Hell? Well, seeing how he wasn't a Christian and he wasn't exactly a sweet person, he'd probably end up there anyway._

"_I'm sorry, Mom. I'll deal with my fate when it comes. Right now, I have a job to do, and a promise to keep." Ed turned away from his mother and walked towards his friends, who now included Winry._

_As soon as he turned his back on his mother, the light faded. His friends, however, started fading too. _

"_What's happening? Al? Winry? No, come back! Don't leave me, dammit!" He began sprinting towards them. Every step became harder. His injuries were reappearing with every inch. He took a running start and leapt towards his friends._

O-O-O

_Beep… Beep… Beepbeepbeepbeepbeeeeeee…_ "Ed? Ed, no, come on, don't leave me! Please!" Ed's heart monitor showed that his heart was failing. Winry tried to reach out to him, but Al held her back.

A doctors and 2 nurses rushed into the room with a defibrillator. "Miss, please move." They rushed to Ed's side and tore off part of the bandages.

"Ok, charge!" The doctor held up the pads and rubbed them together. "Clear!" He shocked Ed. Winry was suddenly glad his auto-mail wasn't attached. If it was, it would have amplified the shock too much.

He was still flat-lined.

"Charge again!" He rubbed them again. "Clear! Come on kid, wake up, dammit! I will not lose you!"

O-O-O

_Ed took a running start and leapt towards his friends._

"_Edward! Hurry! You must reach your room!" Riza pointed down the hall to his hospital room. The door was closing. He was back in his clothes again, and covered in blood. He was barely able to walk, but he dashed for his room._

"_Dammit, dammit, don't close!" He stumbled and the door almost closed. Luckily, he was able to stick his right hand into the door to stop it. However, his auto-mail was disappearing. "Shit!" He crawled to the door and pried it open just as his arm vanished. He pulled himself to a standing position and stumbled to the bed. As he reached it, he passed out and fell into it, soaking the sheets with blood._

O-O-O

… beep… beep…

"Thank god. We got him!" Ed's body convulsed and blood started coming up his stomach tube. The doctor set down the charge pads and wiped the sweat off his brow.

Winry collapsed into Al's lap out of sheer joy that Ed was alive. "I knew you could do it, brother!" Both were amazed that he came out of the coma so soon.

"He's a fighter, that one. I wish I knew how he came out of the coma like that…" The doctor shook his head and began to walk out. "Oh, Alphonse, would you please notify a nurse when he wakes up? We need to make sure he's ok." Al nodded.

He and Winry walked over to stand by Ed, one on either side. Winry moved a strand of hair out of his face, and Al just touched his shoulder. "We're here for you, brother."


	9. Chapter 9

A little more about Ed's 'experience' will be revealed. This is also the last chapter. Hope you enjoyed it! The ending kind of sucks, but I always suck at writing endings…

For the next few days, Ed drifted in and out of consciousness. He was, however, growing stronger by the day, even if that amount was barely noticeable. Al and Winry rarely left his side.

Every now and then, Riza and Roy and other officers came by to see him as well. After a few days, they took out the stomach tubes and started feeding him intravenously. They also took him off life support. After about a week, a miracle happened.

He opened his eyes.

At that time, Roy ad Riza were there. All 4 occupants were chatting, standing near the bed, when they heard a raspy voice. "Goddammit. The first thing I have to see when I wake up is you, bastard?" Roy turned and saw Ed was staring right at him.

"Edward. Glad to see you've recovered." He just stared at his subordinate.

"Oh, Edward, I'm glad you're alright!" Riza managed a smile.

"Big brother! I knew you'd pull through!" Al was right there, and received a weak fist-bump from his sibling.

"ED! I'm so glad you're ok! What the hell were you thinking, going into a collapsing building all by yourself you could have been killed you jackass! Think first next time because there are a lot of people who care about you and if you would've died-" Winry was shouting so loudly that nurses were pausing outside the room to stare and her face was turning colors.

Suddenly, Ed's eyes rolled and his head fell to the side. Winry stopped dead in her rant. "Ed? EDWARD!" She looked about to cry. Then Ed opened his eyes back up.

He was still hoarse from screaming. "Dammit Winry, shut up will you? Or I'll keep faking you out until you freak out and leave." That got a chuckle out of everyone but Winry.

"Hey, brother, how did you come out of the coma so quickly?" Al interrupted the laughs with a question that stunned everyone.

"Now, Alphonse, how would he know? He was unconscious. He probably doesn't even remember-" Riza was interrupted by Ed coughing. He grabbed a small tray and coughed up blood.

"Oh, I was supposed to tell a nurse when you woke up!" Al shook his head and walked out to the nurse's station. A few seconds later, he returned with a nurse.

"So glad to see you're awake, Mr. Elric. How do you feel?" The nurse smiled and proceeded to check Ed and see how he was. "You seem to be doing fine. You'll probably couch up a little more blood, so that's nothing to worry about. You've been through a lot. Take it easy!" She smiled and walked out.

"Riza, I do remember. All too well. I woke up buried in rubble. There was blood everywhere, and a pole sticking through me. I could feel my skull through the gash on my head, and my arm was missing. It was horrible. I… I was really scared. I actually started crying." He turned his head away in shame.

"Edward." He turned his head to look at Roy. "Don't be ashamed. You almost died. If I was in your situation, I might have cried too. Probably not, but don't be ashamed, nevertheless." He smirked at Ed.

Ed actually smiled back a little. "There was something else though. After I passed out in the factory, I remember waking up in a hallway. I was wearing dress shirt and nice pants, but no shoes. At one end of the hall I saw you guys, along with most of the other officers, like Havoc and Hughes. At the other…" He looked right at Al. "I saw Mom."

Winry's eyes widened. "That means… you were dying, doesn't it? Your mother was 'the light'…"A single tear fell down her cheek. Ed reached up and wiped it away.

"Yes, it does. She was in a field, surrounded by light. Below her, there was a black hole. I tried to walk back to you because Al, you were losing your body again. I came close enough to stop that, but then Mom started talking about if I didn't join her in heaven, I would go to hell. The hole swallowed me… I fell into a dark pit of fire. But I thought of you guys and made it out. You started fading, so I ran towards you. When I reached you, I was wearing my old clothes, and I was covered in blood. I dashed to this room and collapsed. Then I woke up, like this. Here we are." He looked around at them and smiled to himself.

"Remember this day, for I, Edward Elric, have seen Heaven, been in Hell, and made it back!" He lifted his arm like he conquered something, then fell into a coughing fit.

Roy laughed. "And yet, O Mighty One, you're STILL a midget!" He started shaking with laughter and slapped his knee."

"WHO ARE YOU *cough* CALLING SO SMALL *hack* THAT HEAVEN WOULDN'T LET *wheeze* HIM IN?" He hacked up some more blood, and flipped Roy off. This made everyone laugh all over again.

A nurse came in carrying a tray with food on it, and a water bottle. "Here, Edward, take a drink of this. It'll help you." The bottle was opaque, so he just assumed it was water. He took a sip and spewed it out, coating Roy in his spit-out beverage.

"DAMMIT I WILL NOT DRINK MILK!" He threw the bottle into the garbage.

"Why, you little-" He glared at Ed and looked like he wanted to explode him.

"Ah ah ah, Mustang." Ed sneered the name. "I'm in the hospital. You wouldn't want to put me back into a _coma,_ would you? _Colonel_?" He smiled evilly, because he knew he could get away with this.

Roy opened his mouth to speak, then shut it. He raised his hand and pointed at Ed, but he was unable to speak. He just flapped his mouth a few times. "Damn you, Edward." He walked out.

"I'm glad you're ok, Edward. I must be off, to make sure he doesn't hurt anyone." Riza smiled and walked out after her commanding officer.

"So, Al, you ready to get back on the trail of the Philosopher's Stone?" Winry looked shocked. Then Ed coughed up more blood.

"Brother, you just went through a major injury. You can't leave." Al cuffed his brother gently on his left shoulder.

The three friends laughed. Another nurse walked in. "This is from one 'Colonel Roy Mustang' to one 'little blond guy'." She handed a box to Al and walked out.

"Uh oh. I'm afraid to know what this is…" Ed grabbed the box from Al and ripped it open with his left hand. He slowly opened the box.

"No way. No freakin' way. What the hell kind of sick joke is this?" He pulled out a baby bottle with milk in it. A note was attached that read:

_Dearest midget:_

_This is a get-well gift for you._

_The bottle is what I deemed appropriate for someone of your stature, _

_and the milk is a little gift from myself._

_Hope you're well soon._

_Cordially, COLONEL Roy Mustang._

Ed threw the whole box into the garbage and shook his fist in the general direction of headquarters. "DAMN YOU MUSTANG!"


End file.
